Hi all. I’ve been an Appleton 12yo or reserve blend drinker for many years but have not been very adventurous beyond that. Would love some recommendations or a link to a post which covers it if this is already out there.

I mostly drink with cola or with the San pellegrino blood orange soda (which is amazing if you haven’t tried that combo). Would be happy to have some sippers too. Many thanks!

Hey guys, I'm looking to get into rum. In my college days, I only consumed a few brands of cheaper rum (Bacardi, Gosling's, Myer's), and not truly enjoyed any of it, besides mixing it in pineapple juice. My usual drink is Scotch, and in Scotch, there is a tendency among the more enthusiastic folks (some might say snobs), of which I am one, to talk shit about manufacturers using caramel coloring (e150a) to make the product darker. Presumably it's darkened because psychologically people associate color with age and "more flavor". It might seem harmless, but it's a lie, and it just throws off my enjoyment of something if the color looks unnatural to me given the time I know it's spent in a barrel.

When I look at rums, it seems like nearly all of the aged bottles I look at exhibit a VERY dark color that is hard for me to believe is not manipulated. Am I missing something about barrel-aging in rum vs other spirits, or is color-manipulation really as widespread as it seems? Are there rum manufacturers known for not doing this?

Otherwise, I'm also interested in any suggestions for first bottle! Something strong.

I have several bottles being held at an auction house in the UK. If I add one or two more bottles I will drop the per bottle cost to roughly $21.00/bottle versus the $91 minimum to ship just one. If any one wants to combine orders drop me a DM.

This will work even if you bought your bottle at a different auction house than I did.

I'm just a beginner with rum and I know that Bacardi isn't the most praised manufacturers out there. Are my taste buds just basically 'fucked up' or am I onto something here? There's just some hints of chlorine acids and it takes my brain for a whirl. Just want to hear about similar instances or something remotely close to this one?